Brentwood School is one of only seven educational establishments nominated for a UK Heart Safe Award.
The School has been given the Hand on Heart accolade for investing in life-saving defibrillator machines for the School and training staff in how to use them.
Brentwood has been nominated alongside the medical teams of Tottenham Hotspur and Bolton Wanderers football clubs who were widely praised for their quick responses when Fabrice Muamba suffered a sudden cardiac arrest on the pitch at White Hart Lane in March.
The UK Heart Safe Awards celebrate businesses, organisations and individuals who have invested in defibrillators and CPR to protect the public against sudden cardiac arrest. Although there is only a 6% chance of surviving a cardiac arrest outside of a hospital, this increases to 74% if a defibrillator and trained staff are nearby.
Over 100,000 people die each year in the UK due to sudden cardiac arrest; more than lung cancer, breast cancer and AIDs combined. Other businesses who have been nominated include Virgin Active, Ginsters and Sony Europe Ltd (UK Division).
The School is nominated in the category Heart Safe Educational Establishment of the Year which celebrates an ‘outstanding school, college or university, which has invested in life-saving equipment and staff training to provide a Heart Safe environment for their employees and students.’
Mr David Crane, the School’s Combined Cadet Force Staff Instructor, said he entered the School for the award because he was so proud of the ‘massive progress’ Brentwood had made in its first aid commitment to staff and pupils. He said: “We now have not one but three defibrillator machines on site.”
Over the past year, Mr Crane, who is a trained First Aid Instructor, has run defibrillator courses for staff in addition to the other First Aid at Work courses he runs on a regular basis.
The awards were judged by a board of company directors, doctors, representatives from other heart-related charities and health journalists. Event organiser Rowan Jamieson said: “The number and standard of entries was extremely high so well done on making the shortlist, which is a fantastic achievement in itself.”
The 2012 UK Heart Safe Awards ceremony will be held on Thursday 20th September 2012 at Salford City Stadium, Greater Manchester.